[toc]PokerStars have announced the schedule for their first series of PokerStars Championship and PokerStars Festival events to take place in the first half of 2017.
The schedule includes stops in the Bahamas, UK, Czech Republic, Panama, China and Monte Carlo.
About PokerStars Championships and Festivals
In August, PokerStars announced the end of its major live tournament series, most notably the European Poker Tour but also other events such as the UK and Ireland Poker Tour, Latin American Poker Tour, Estrallas Poker Tour and more.
These events would now all be consolidated into one umbrella tournament series known as PokerStars Championships, with Main Event buy-ins of €5,000/$5,000, and PokerStars Festivals, with Main Event buy-ins of $1,000/€1,000.
“The PokerStars Championship and PokerStars Festival events are an enhancement of the existing PokerStars sponsored live tours, helping to take our vision for live poker to a whole new level,” said PokerStars Director of Live Events Edgar Stuchly.
“We are always thinking of how to bring the best experience to players, through the variety of tournaments we sponsor, the ease of finding information, how we communicate to players and media, and the overall experience on and off the felt.”
The online poker behemoth has hosted over 500 live tournament series, awarding more than $1.5 billion in prize money to a share of 800,000 entries over the course of the past decade.
The 2017 line-up
So far, PokerStars has revealed a five-month schedule of tournament stops around the world, visiting three continents and six countries.
PokerStars Championship Bahamas (Jan. 6-14)
The PokerStars Caribbean Adventure has been a regular kick-off to the calendar year for poker tournament players and will continue to be so from 2017, albeit under the brand of the PokerStars Championship Bahamas.
This stop will feature a $5,000 Main Event and various side events much like the current incarnation, and will continue to be hosted at the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas.
PokerStars Festival London (Jan. 22-29)
The first PokerStars Festival in 2017 will take place at the Hippodrome Casino in Leicester Square, London.
The Main Event will carry a £990 buy-in and guarantee £400,000, highlighting a 22-event schedule across eight days.
PokerStars Festival Rozvadov (March 2-13)
The King’s Casino in Rozvadov, Czech Republic, is one of Europe’s hottest poker destinations having recently hosted the World Series of Poker Circuit and scheduled to host the World Series of Poker Europe.
The Main Event will guarantee €500,000 for a €1,100 buy-in and run from March 9-13.
PokerStars Championship Panama (March 10-20)
South America and Latin America have been booming poker markets for some time, with the PokerStars Latin America Poker Tour a roaring success. They’re now hoping that a PokerStars Championship stop, their largest ever in Latin America, will be similarly well-received.
PokerStars Championship Macau (March 30-April 9)
Naturally a part of PokerStars’ desire to have a global poker tournament schedule includes a trip to Asia, and obviously Macau is the number one choice.
The first major PokerStars tournament in Macau will feature 11 days of high-stakes and mid-stakes tournament action.
PokerStars Championship presented by Monte-Carlo Casino (Apr 25-May 5)
The first half of PokerStars’ 2017 live schedule concludes in Monte Carlo with an 11-day series of events including the €5,300 Main Event. Like the European Poker Tour stop before it, the Monte Carlo stop will boast a €25,000 High Roller event and a €100,000 Super High Roller.
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